MARINE CORPS AIR STATION MIRAMAR, Calif. -- Tyrone Butler, Marine Wing Headquarters Squadron 3 Dawgs' heavy hitter, propelled his team to the lead, scoring two homeruns in the season's first intramural softball match Aug. 16, leaving behind the Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 16 Shockers, 15-10.

Although the first-year Shockers presented little threat to the 7-time champions, the Dawgs knew that they could not underestimate the opposition going in to the game.

"This is the first time we're playing a new team in the league. We can't underestimate them though," said John Aragon, pitcher for the Dawgs. "We're just going into this with confidence. If you lack that, you can keep swinging your bat, but your not going to win the game."

Starting strong, the Shockers scored three runs in the first inning, intimidating the Dawgs with a great first impression.

They hit a homerun  "right when they went up to bat," said Butler, coach for the Dawgs. "We knew that they were good after the first inning. So they actually helped us out, making us play that much better. We didn't let our confidence or experience get to us."

The Dawgs showed the Shockers who was boss early in the game, scoring seven runs in the first inning.

"I felt nervous batting for the first time this season," said Lucas Wangen, left fielder for the Dawgs. "But I knew we could beat the Shockers easily."

However, the Shockers didn't let the Dawgs take a bite out of their spirit in the first inning. They scored four runs to the Dawgs' three in the second inning.

"Our main plan of attack is to hit the ball and score," said Christian Rodas, first baseman for the Shockers. "We just need to hang in there."

Both teams tried to "hang in there" in the third inning, but neither of them scored. The new Shockers were only three points behind the experienced Dawgs going into the fourth inning, 10-7.

The Dawgs stayed strong and fought to reclaim their title, scoring five more runs in the fourth inning, while the Shockers did not score any runs, resulting in a score of 15-7.

"We're spreading out our lineup," said Butler. "Our base and power hitters are distributed, so we have an advantage going up to bat."

The Shockers tried to even out the score in the fifth inning, but it was too late. Even though they scored two more runs to the Dawgs' zero, there was not enough time to catch up. The score going into the sixth inning was 15-9.

The 55-minute time limit for the game allotted for one more inning, where the Shockers were able to score one more run before the game was cut short. The Dawgs won, 15-10.

"Honestly, I think we did well for as young as a team we are," said Rodas. " This was my first time ever playing on a team, just like most of the other guys, and I had fun."